July 6, 2006

Rush Limbaugh cleared in Viagra probe

by ssavage

MIAMI (Reuters) - Conservative radio commentator Rush
Limbaugh has been cleared of wrongdoing following his detention
at a Florida airport last month, when agents found a bottle of
Viagra in his luggage that was not prescribed in his name,
authorities said on Wednesday.

Under Florida law, certain prescription drugs, including
Pfizer's erectile dysfunction remedy Viagra, must bear the name
of the person carrying them. Violation is a second-degree
misdemeanor punishable by a $500 fine and 60 days in jail.

But the Palm Beach County State Attorney's Office said
Limbaugh's psychiatrist had agreed to have his name placed on
the Viagra bottle, rather than that of his patient, "in an
effort to avoid potentially embarrassing publicity."

Limbaugh, an abrasive and often moralistic talk show host,
admitted in October 2003 that he was addicted to painkillers.
He was returning from the Dominican Republic when he was
detained at Palm Beach County International Airport on June 26
after arriving there on a private plane.

Michael Edmondson, a spokesman for the Palm Beach County
State Attorney's Office, said the Viagra incident would have no
impact on a deal Limbaugh struck with prosecutors in April to
end an investigation into whether he had illegally used
different doctors at the same time to obtain large quantities
of painkillers.

Under the deal, Limbaugh was booked on one count of
concealing information to fraudulently obtain a prescription
drug. Prosecutors agreed to drop the charge in 18 months if
Limbaugh continued to seek drug therapy treatment, his lawyer
said.